INNOVATING. INFORMING.

Rapid changes in business, society, finance, and technology create knock-on tensions within the workplace, and employees of various age groups respond to the disruptions differently. When that happens, new study data suggests employers should consider turning to Gen X workers — now roughly aged 45 to 60 years old — as a key generational bridge between younger and older staff cohorts whose reaction to and perception of change often considerably varies. New research highlights the importance of the role Gen Xers can play in smoothing over intergenerational workplace differences in behavioral norms and outlooks that can divide older baby boomer colleagues from their younger millennial and Gen Zer workmates.

Eating right and being physically active are two of the most important factors in living longer and healthier. And there's one hobby that could help you accomplish both—gardening. A new study from the Mather Institute found that gardening supports older adults' physical and psychosocial well-being. To explore the wide array of benefits gardening offers, researchers surveyed more than 2,000 people aged 55 and older about their behaviors related to gardening and a variety of well-being outcomes.

Older adults who own pets feel more socially connected, leading to increased happiness and life satisfaction as well as reduced feelings of loneliness, according to the results of a new study from the Mather Institute. In a new paper, "Furry Friends. Healthier Lives," Mather Institute researchers explored how pet ownership influences happiness, life satisfaction and loneliness in older adults, emphasizing the role of social cohesion, or how connected and supported individuals feel within their community.